Jobs for women top priority

Jobs for women top priority

RIYADH: Women in Saudi Arabia have been allocated a package of services to ensure their development and employment, Labor Minister Mufrej Al-Haqabani said Tuesday.

The minister was speaking at the first panel discussion at the second National Business Women Forum opened by Commerce and Industry Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah in Riyadh. The forum was held under the aegis of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman to identify challenges facing Saudi businesswomen.The minister said that affiliated institutions such as the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation, the General Organization for Social Insurance, and the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) continue to provide a package of initiatives and development programs to help businesswomen.Explaining the electronic services provided to assist young Saudi men and women to find jobs in the public and private sectors, the minister said that separate sections for women have been set up in all regions to boost this process.He pointed out that his ministry has developed a project for productive families with other agencies, which helps women to invest and work from home. This service has been improved in coordination with the chambers of commerce and industry in Jeddah and Makkah.With regard to the HRDF, he said it supports training and employment of citizens in various sectors. It also funds field programs and projects to develop local human resources. He urged the public and private sectors to support the government’s Saudization efforts.Huda Al-Jeraisy, a businesswoman, said that while women have done well in business over the past few years, the government should provide further incentives and support so that they can participate more fully in the national economy.“Coordination must be improved between licensed entities and supervising authorities to facilitate challenges facing investors. Flexibility and innovation are also key for investors to keep up with regional experiences and achieve integration in the region in terms of providing quality products and services that meet local and regional market requirements.”Al-Jeraisy said the forum presents a great opportunity for participants to exchange expertise, discuss related issues such as methods to implement five-year plans, and identify promising business opportunities for women in the Kingdom. It was important for the forum to attract policy makers and leading business figures — particularly ones that support investments by women — to keep up to date with domestic, regional and international developments, she said.

Crown Prince: Future opportunities between Saudi Arabia and China are very big

Saudi Arabia and China signed economic cooperation agreements worth a total of $28 billion at a joint investment forum

The crown prince presided at a China-Saudi cooperation forum that concluded with 12 agreements on cooperation

Updated 11 min 43 sec ago

Arab News

February 22, 2019 15:24

0

RIYADH: Future opportunities between Saudi Arabia and China are very big, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said Friday during his visit to China.

Citing a 32 percent increase in bilateral trade last year, the crown prince added that high-level contacts were paying off in areas from commerce to security and defense.
"Saudi Arabia's relations with China can be traced back a very long time in the past," Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told President Xi Jinping at their meeting in the Great Hall of the People in the heart of the Chinese capital.

Meanwhile, the Chinese president stressed his country's keenness on joint efforts with Saudi Arabia to support strategic relations between the two countries. He added that there has been coordination with Saudi Arabia on international and regional issues in recent years.

The crown prince earlier Friday presided at a China-Saudi cooperation forum that concluded with 12 agreements on cooperation in fields ranging from petroleum and the chemical industry to investment, renewable energy and counter-terrorism. Saudi Arabia is one of China's top crude oil suppliers and an important market for its exports.

Saudi Arabia and China also signed economic cooperation agreements worth a total of $28 billion at a joint investment forum. 35 agreements had been signed at the forum, held by Saudi Arabia’s investment agency SAGIA. Four licenses for Chinese companies were awarded at the forum.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also pledged Saudi Arabia's backing for China's gargantuan "belt and road" infrastructure project, saying he was willing to link it with the kingdom's Vision 2030 plans— a blueprint put forth by the crown prince to wean the kingdom off its reliance on oil, particularly as sustainable sources of energy become cheaper and more popular.
The Crown Prince's visit follows trips to India and Pakistan, which send millions of laborers to Saudi Arabia and are seeking closer economic ties.